- Rawlinson turns into advisor as Lucid delivers Gravity, pivots to extra inexpensive EVs
- CTO of Lucid and father or mother Atieva since 2013, led efficiency-and-performance push
- Oversaw Lucid Air and Gravity, Tesla Mannequin S
Peter Rawlinson is not the highest government at California’s Lucid Motors.
In a press launch, Lucid mentioned that Rawlinson “has stepped except for his prior roles,” and can transition to a task as senior technical advisor to the chairman of the board at Lucid, whereas COO Marc Winterhoff has been made interim CEO.
Rawlinson was elevated to the function of CEO at Lucid in 2019, however it’s the chief technical officer (CTO) function that he doubly held that’s been particularly essential. Because the engineering wizard behind lots of what has propelled the corporate to its technological preeminence, Rawlinson particularly has established the corporate as able to extracting essentially the most miles out of electrical propulsion programs—even versus rival Tesla.
Lucid CEO Peter Rawlinson – Arizona plant commissioning
“Now that we now have efficiently launched the Lucid Gravity, I’ve determined it’s lastly the fitting time for me to step except for my roles at Lucid,” mentioned Rawlinson, within the launch. “I’m extremely pleased with the accomplishments the Lucid crew have achieved collectively by my tenure of those previous twelve years.”
It has certainly been that lengthy. Rawlinson joined Lucid’s father or mother, Atieva, as chief expertise officer in 2013, and Rawlinson and design chief Derek Jenkins first introduced to a small group, together with yours actually, a idea model of the Air in 2016, when Lucid turned the automotive model of Atieva.
Lucid virtually didn’t make it—and won’t have with out Rawlinson’s perseverance. Ford thought of shopping for Lucid in 2018, then took a cross. Lastly in April 2019, with the completion of an preliminary $1 billion funding from the Saudi Arabian Public Funding Fund, issues acquired actual and growth continued.
Amid Lucid’s cash-strapped hunger period, from 2017 nicely into 2019, Rawlinson stored a core engineering crew and revisited a few of the key tech within the Lucid Air—what he known as the core competence of the corporate. That led to the breakthroughs just like the 900+ volt tech and Lucid’s personal permanent-magnet motor design it makes use of right now. Within the meantime Lucid had began offering Components E battery packs for the whole racing collection, which added to the corporate’s data base.
The corporate has “initiated a search to determine Lucid’s subsequent Chief Govt Officer,” with help from an government search agency, in response to the discharge. “The brand new CEO will assist Lucid execute its technique and put together for the following chapter,” it said.
Peter Rawlinson
Rawlinson has held positions at Jaguar and Lotus, amongst different corporations, however Inexperienced Automotive Stories first got here to know Rawlinson when he was Tesla’s chief engineer for the Mannequin S, accountable for its design and manufacturing. Again in 2011, when he was in that function, Rawlinson informed GCR that he was notably pleased with the Mannequin S battery pack and the way it match electrically and mechanically inside that trailblazer, which might go on to win all types of awards.
The Lucid CEO has managed to rent top-tier expertise on the automaker, together with Tesla’s former manufacturing chief and different prime executives from VW, BMW, and Apple, and maintain on to them in a method Tesla hasn’t. He stored Lucid’s braintrust within the California’s Bay Space, however it opened its Casa Grande, Arizona, manufacturing facility in 2021.
Lucid midsize SUV teaser
The Lucid Air has been Inexperienced Automotive Stories’ Finest Automotive To Purchase, and despite the fact that it’s a really giant automotive, the Air Pure stands as America’s most effective EV. It’s now delivering the Lucid Gravity SUV and hopes to greater than double its automobile manufacturing this yr on account of having the mannequin within the combine. And three inexpensive EVs, constructed off a brand new mid-size platform and with an excellent lower-cost Atlas drive unit, are due inside a pair years.
For now, Rawlinson and that tech preeminence stay Lucid’s energy; he’s steered that it’s going to take years for the competitors to meet up with Lucid’s effectivity edge, and we expect he’s proper.
